Brite Creek Farm spotlighted

At their Sept. 1 meeting, the Tehachapi Rotary Club heard from Jay Shipman who, with his wife Hannah, owns Brite Creek Farm, which is located on Banducci Rd. on the short stretch between Highway 202 and Highline Rd. Although they have lived in Tehachapi for 19 years, they only opened Brite Creek Farm in the fall of 2018 and it has since become well-known as a source of locally grown organic vegetables and grass-fed beef.

Shipman grew up raising cattle and farming in the Imperial Valley, but it was not until his wife Hannah was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis about 15 years ago that the couple began to explore a newer healthier way to eat and farm. Jay had learned about regenerative agriculture during his studies at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and said that the warm days and cool nights of Tehachapi created the perfect climate. Animals eat what is good and trample the rest which replenishes CO2 in the atmosphere.

The property on Banducci Rd. had caught Shipman's eye years ago as a perfect spot for an organic farm. When he found out it was for sale, the couple snapped it up. Building a store, he discovered, would be costly and take a very long time to build with all the permits required by the county, so the Shipmans decided to move a small Airstream trailer onto the property. Recently he and Hannah began hosting Farm to Table Dinners. Other new ventures include keeping bees for honey and raising turkeys for the holidays. They will have a pumpkin patch this fall and are bringing in Christmas trees from Oregon. Shipman said his biggest challenge this last year has been elk visitations – they were destroying his crops. He said he has been forced to put up high fences to keep them out.

Brite Creek Farm is open Wednesday – Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The Rotary Club of Tehachapi is a volunteer service organization with the motto, "Service Above Self." The club meets on Thursdays at noon. For more information about Rotary Club, you can visit their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/RotaryClubofTehachapi/ or contact club President Judy Trujillo at (661)401-0968.

The Rotary Club of Tehachapi is a volunteer service organization with the motto, "Service Above Self." The club meets on Thursdays at noon. For more information about Rotary Club, you can visit their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/RotaryClubofTehachapi/ or contact club President Paul Kaminski, (661) 699-5851.